okapi, African forest elephant, pygmy hippopotamus, bongo (antelope), chimpanzee, bonobo and the Congo peafowl. Its apex predator is the Leopard, which are larger than their savannah counterparts due to lack of competition from other large predators

Most of the Central African countries depend heavily on the vast natural resources in the region for their income. The Republic of Congo and Gabon are oil nations. DR Congo depends on income from minerals. The global market is craving copper, coltan and cobalt to produce everything from smartphones to batteries in electric vehicles, all part of the green economy. Nonetheless, people in the region face poverty, inequality and food insecurity. Weaknesses in governance, institutions and infrastructure make it difficult to successfully address these challenges.

slash-and-burn agriculture accounts for 84 percent of the deforestation, while logging accounts for about 10 percent.

In DR Congo, deforestation is mostly caused by a growing population trying to cover their basic, daily needs for food and charcoal.

Deforestation in the Congo Basin is changing rapidly.  In 2022, a tree-covered area of 15 603 km2 was lost, according to recent satellite data. This amounts to almost 8 000 football fields of forest cleared every single day. Most of it occurred in DR Congo.

The Congo Basin Forest is the size of India or almost ten times the size of Germany, covering 3.3 million km2. Almost two thirds of the forest is within DR Congo. It provides food, firewood, water and shade.

here are an overwhelming 10.000 species of plants, including 3.000 that are found only here: 600 tree species, 1000 bird species, 900 species of butterflies, 280 species of reptiles and 400 species of mammals.

At this rate, 27% of the region’s forests will be wiped out by 2050.13

Threatened and endangered species in the Congo Basin also face international demand for their parts and products, including illegal elephant ivory, pangolin scales, and endangered bird species.11 This is threatening the survival of many wildlife species, which is leading to local extinctions and risking the loss of forest elephants in their entirety. Deforestation Two-thirds of global forest cover loss occurs in the tropics and subtropics, where vast clusters of deforestation hot spots—also known as “deforestation fronts”—are destroying the important ecosystem services forests provide. The Congo Basin is one of 24 hot spots around the world.12

monkeys, antelopes, gorillas, and bonobos

The regional commercial bushmeat trade and poaching of species such as elephants, pangolins, and parrots are the leading causes of wildlife loss in the Congo Basin.

the BaAka, BaKa, BaMbuti, Efe, and other Indigenous peoples have lived there for centuries and are profoundly connected to the ecosystem. They possess vast, in-depth knowledge of the forests, local animals, and medicinal plants.

The Congo Basin is vital to human life, inside and beyond the forests’ borders. The regional population across the six countries is estimated at over 157 million people,7 of which some 60 million people rely directly on Congo Basin forests for food, medicine, materials, and shelter.

In a world where the average species population has declined 73% since 1970,4 the astonishing biodiversity in the Congo Basin is one of the reasons it is a focus of WWF’s conservation work. The Congo Basin is home to one in five of Earth’s living species, including at least 400 mammal species, 1,000 species of birds, and 700 species of fish.

The basin’s lush array of trees and tropical plants also allows it to absorb massive amounts of carbon, making it the planet’s largest remaining tropical carbon sink.

The colossal scale of the Congo Basin and the relative intactness of its habitats contribute to its extraordinary vitality and species richness. Its iconic wildlife, including gorillas, forest elephants, chimpanzees, and buffalo

encompassing a rich mosaic of rivers, dense forests, savannas, and wetlands, including the world’s biggest tropical peatlands.2

including the critically endangered forest elephant and the largest number and diversity of great ape species.

cover six countries: Cameroon, Central African Republic (CAR), Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Republic of Congo (RoC), Equatorial Guinea, and Gabon

The Congo Basin forests span around 500 million acres